perceived; perceiving; perceives
1
a
: to attain awareness or understanding of
b
: to regard as being such
was perceived as a loser
Examples of perceive in a Sentence
We perceive by means of the kaleidoscopic mirror of this life. This means that our ability to perceive is at once tyrannized by our expectations, and at war with them.
—
James Baldwin, The Evidence of Things Not Seen, 1985
Standing in the hallway just out of sight during this interview was Sarah. She held her baby on her hip and she listened. She perceived as no one in the family could the enormity of the misfortune.
—E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime, 1974
… and when they perceived her to be little struck with the duet they were so good as to play, they could do no more than make her a generous present of some of their least valued toys, and leave her to herself, while they adjourned to whatever might be the favourite holiday sport of the moment, making artificial flowers or wasting gold paper.
—Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, 1814
I thought I perceived a problem, but I wasn't sure.
perceived that it was going to be a nice day
James Baldwin, The Evidence of Things Not Seen, 1985
Standing in the hallway just out of sight during this interview was Sarah. She held her baby on her hip and she listened. She perceived as no one in the family could the enormity of the misfortune.
—E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime, 1974
… and when they perceived her to be little struck with the duet they were so good as to play, they could do no more than make her a generous present of some of their least valued toys, and leave her to herself, while they adjourned to whatever might be the favourite holiday sport of the moment, making artificial flowers or wasting gold paper.
—Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, 1814
I thought I perceived a problem, but I wasn't sure.
perceived that it was going to be a nice day
Recent Examples on the Web
Some define job satisfaction as the pleasurable or positive emotional state that results from how someone perceives their job experience, while others see it simply as how people feel about their jobs and the different aspects of it.
—Dinorah Nieves, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025
In a 2011 study published in Social Psychological and Personality Science, researchers concluded that people with names perceived positively by others were more likely to make a positive social impression.
—Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025
However, a lack of guardrails or clarity could transform what’s perceived as a top perk into a real pain.
—Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Travel + Leisure, 19 May 2025
Huang talked about Isaac Groot N1 (announced in March), which is a foundational model for robotics that gives humanoid robots the ability to reason, plan, and perceive their surroundings.
—Shannon Carroll, Quartz, 19 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for perceive
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Dinorah Nieves, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025
In a 2011 study published in Social Psychological and Personality Science, researchers concluded that people with names perceived positively by others were more likely to make a positive social impression.
—Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025
However, a lack of guardrails or clarity could transform what’s perceived as a top perk into a real pain.
—Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Travel + Leisure, 19 May 2025
Huang talked about Isaac Groot N1 (announced in March), which is a foundational model for robotics that gives humanoid robots the ability to reason, plan, and perceive their surroundings.
—Shannon Carroll, Quartz, 19 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for perceive
Cite this Entry
“Perceive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/perceive. Accessed 23 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
perceive
verb
per·ceive
pər-ˈsēv 
perceived; perceiving
2
: to become aware of through the senses and especially through sight
perceiver
noun
Medical Definition
perceive
transitive verb
per·ceive
pər-ˈsēv
perceived; perceiving
: to become aware of through the senses
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